Metro Manila (CNN Philippines) — It is final: Former President Ferdinand Marcos can be buried at the Libingan ng Mga Bayani, the Supreme Court ruled on Tuesday.
Voting 9-5, the high court dismissed all seven cases challenging the proposed burial of the former strongman Ferdinand Marcos at the Libingan ng mga Bayani, two independent Supreme Court sources confirmed to CNN Philippines.
One of Duterte's campaign promises was that he will allow the burial of Marcos at the LNMB "not because he was a hero, but because he was a Filipino soldier."
The Libingan ng mga Bayani was established in 1947 to pay tribute to Filipino soldiers and fallen heroes, and to serve as a final resting place for former Philippine presidents, war veterans, notable government statesmen, dignitaries, and national artists.
Duterte maintained his position that "there is a law which grants Marcos a burial in the Libingan ng mga Bayani."
"He (the late President Marcos) is qualified to be buried there. Kung ayaw ng ibang Pilipino, fine," Duterte said then. "Mag-demonstrate kayo, go ahead. You can use the streets," he added.
[Translation: "He is qualified to be buried there. If other Filipinos don't want this, fine. You can demonstrate, go ahead. You can use the streets."]
Duterte has always believed the issue on Marcos' burial has been a source of division among Filipinos.
Source: CNN Philippines
Back and forth
The magistrates held two rounds of oral arguments on the petitions against the hero's burial for Marcos on August 31 and September 8. (READ: SC orals on Marcos burial: Issues and answers)
On August 23, the High Court issued a status quo ante order (SQAO) on the burial of Marcos at the Libingan ng mga Bayani until September 13. On September 8, it extended the order until October 18 and then held it further until November 8.
In August, Martial Law victims asked the Supreme Court to intervene, arguing that Marcos does not deserve a slot in the national shrine because burying him there violates Republic Act 289, which created the Libingan ng mga Bayani.
Source: Rappler
Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos, Sr. (September 11, 1917 – September 28, 1989) was a Filipino politician and kleptocrat who was President of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He ruled as dictator under martial law from 1972 until 1981. While his regime started an unprecedented number of infrastructure projects and monuments (known colloquially as an "edifice complex'" and at great taxpayer cost), it also became infamous for its corruption, extravagance and brutality.
Here's the rest of Ferdinand Marcos' Wikipedia page.
Opinion:
His son, Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos, Jr., almost won the vice presidency last May. He continuously claims that he was cheated out of the elections. He also claims he has a college degree at Oxford, but that's also not true so I really can't trust anything that comes out of this guy's mouth.
Frankly, I'm appalled by what happened to my country but, then again, for some awful reason, I guess there is some kind of precedent in some law somewhere that states that it's okay for somebody like the aforementioned dictator to be given a hero's burial. But, what do you think? Is it okay to give a hero's burial to a person as controversial as him? Imagine if a former dictator in your country was given a hero's burial "for peace and the healing of the nation." What do you think?
